Patch preparations with misuse prevention features

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure provides a patch preparation having features that prevent misuse. In some embodiments, a patch preparation containing a plaster on a support, wherein the plaster comprises a solvent having a vapor pressure equal to or greater than 1 kPa at 20° C. The patch preparation can lose its adhesion after the plaster is exposed to air and at least some of the solvent has evaporated, or if the patch is removed from the skin. This feature prevent the used patch from being applied to the skin again, and can prevent misuse. A method of forming a patch preparation is also disclosed.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE TO ANY PRIORITY APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation-in-part of International Application No. PCT/JP2017/010779, filed Mar. 16, 2017, which claims the benefit of priority to Japanese Appl. No. 2016-060817, filed Mar. 24, 2016. Any and all applications for which a foreign or domestic priority claim is identified in the Application Data Sheet as filed with the present application are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1.57.

BACKGROUND

Field

The present disclosure relates to a patch preparation having features that prevent misuse.

Description of the Related Art

Misuse of pharmaceutical products including over-the-counter drugs and prescription drugs has been the primary cause of poisoning in children worldwide for many years. In particular, patch preparations can still contain a certain amount of active ingredient after being used or removed from the skin. These used preparations can sometimes adhere to another person's skin, by accident or intentionally, which can cause poisoning, and occasionally, death. In order to prevent misuse due to the carelessness like this and/or intentional abuse, techniques to ensure safe disposal of used preparations were disclosed in WO 2003/103673.

SUMMARY Problem to be Solved

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a patch preparation with a misuse resistance feature that does not require a patient activation or performing a certain action after removal from the skin.

Means for Solving the Problems

As a result of intensive investigation, the present inventors found that the problem mentioned above can be solved by a patch preparation containing a solvent with a specific vapor pressure in its plaster, thus achieved the present object.

Non-limiting examples and embodiments of the present disclosure include the following (1) to (20):

(1) A patch preparation comprising a plaster disposed on a support, wherein the plaster comprises a solvent having a vapor pressure equal to or greater than 1 kPa at 20° C., and the amount of the solvent is about 2% to 35% by weight of the plaster.

(2) The patch preparation of item (1), wherein the amount of solvent is about 5% to about 25% by weight of the plaster.

(3) The patch preparation of item (1) or (2), wherein the solvent is selected from the group consisting of an acyclic or cyclic aliphatic hydrocarbon, an aliphatic alcohol, an esters, a ketones, an ether, an aromatic hydrocarbons, and water, and combinations thereof.

(4) The patch preparation of item (3), wherein the solvent is selected from the group consisting of n-hexane, n-heptane, cyclohexane, ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, isobutyl alcohol, 2-buthanol, isobutyl acetate, isopropyl acetate, ethyl acetate, acetone, methyl-ethyl-ketone, methyl-isobutyl-ketone, diethyl ether tetrahydrofuran, 1,4-dioxyane, benzene, xylene, and water, and combinations thereof.

(5) The patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (4), wherein the plaster further comprises a medicament.

(6) The patch preparation of item (5), wherein the medicament is selected from the group consisting of hypnosedative, stimulant, psychoneurotic agent, regional anesthetic, muscle relaxant, suxametonium, antiparkinsonian agent, antimigraine agent, anti-smoking drug, anti-allergic agent, anti-Alzheimer's agent, and opioid analgesic medication, and combinations thereof.

(7) The patch preparation of item (6), wherein the medicament comprises or is selected from the group consisting of one or more opioid analgesic medications selected from the group consisting of morphine, codeine, fentanyl, oxycodone, and hydromorphone, and combinations thereof.

(8) The patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (7), wherein the plaster further comprises a base material.

(9) The patch preparation of item (8), wherein the base material comprises an elastic polymer.

(10) The patch preparation of item (9), wherein the elastic polymer comprises an acrylic polymer, a rubber polymer, or a silicone-based polymer, or combinations thereof; or wherein the elastic polymer is selected from the group consisting of an acrylic polymer, a rubber polymer, and a silicone-based polymer.

(11) The patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (10), wherein the plaster further comprises one or more additives.

(12) The patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (11), wherein the support is a solvent permeable support.

(13) The patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (11), wherein the support is a solvent impermeable support.

(14) A patch preparation comprising a solvent permeable support, a first plaster, a solvent impermeable support, and a second plaster, wherein:

-   -   the first plaster is disposed on the solvent permeable support;     -   the solvent impermeable support is disposed on the first         plaster;     -   the second plaster is disposed on the solvent impermeable         support, and the second plaster comprises a medicament; and     -   the surface area of the first plaster is greater than the         surface area of the solvent impermeable support, and the surface         area of the solvent impermeable support is greater than or equal         to the surface area of the second plaster.

(15) The patch preparation of item (14), wherein the first plaster does not contain a medicament.

(16) A method of preparing a patch preparation comprising:

-   -   providing a support;     -   providing a coating solution comprising a solvent and a polymer;     -   disposing the coating solution on the support to form a plaster;         and     -   drying the plaster until the amount of the solvent is about 2%         to 35% by weight of the plaster.

(17) The method of item (16), wherein the coating solution further comprises a medicament.

(18) The method of item (16) or (17), wherein the solvent has a vapor pressure equal to or greater than 1 kPa at 20° C.

(19) The patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (15) for percutaneous delivery of a medicament, wherein the patch preparation loses its adhesion when the plaster is exposed to air and the solvent concentration in the plaster decreases more than 50% or after the patch preparation is removed from skin.

(20) The patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (15) for percutaneous delivery of a medicament, wherein the patch preparation loses its adhesion partially or completely when the plaster is exposed to air for at least about 1 minute, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 4 minutes, 5 minutes, 6 minutes, 7 minutes, 8 minutes, 9 minutes, 10 minutes, or a time frame defined by any of the two preceding values.

(21) A method of preventing or reducing the occurrence of misuse or abuse of a patch preparation for percutaneous delivery of a medicament, comprising: providing a patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (15) to a subject in need thereof, wherein the patch preparation loses its adhesion when the plaster is exposed to air and the solvent concentration in the plaster decreases more than 50% or after the patch preparation is removed from skin.

(22) A method of preventing or reducing the occurrence of misuse or abuse of a patch preparation for percutaneous delivery of a medicament, comprising: providing a patch preparation of any one of items (1) to (15) to a subject in need thereof, wherein the patch preparation loses its adhesion partially or completely when the plaster is exposed to air for at least about 1 minute, 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 4 minutes, 5 minutes, 6 minutes, 7 minutes, 8 minutes, 9 minutes, 10 minutes, or a time frame defined by any of the two preceding values.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of an example of a multilayer patch preparation.

FIG. 2 shows the percutaneous permeability of Oxycodone of the patch preparation 6 evaluated by using Franz static diffusion cells at each sampling point (1 hr, 2 hr, 4 hr, 6 hr, and 8 hr).

FIG. 3 shows the percutaneous permeability of Fentanyl of the patch preparation 7 evaluated by using Franz static diffusion cells at each sampling point (2 hr, 4 hr, 6 hr, 8 hr, and 24 hr).

FIG. 4 shows the percutaneous permeability of Hydromorphone of the patch preparation 8 evaluated by using Franz static diffusion cells at each sampling point (1 hr, 2 hr, 4 hr, 8 hr, 11 hr, 21 hr, and 24 hr).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The patch preparation of the present disclosure comprises a support and one or more plasters. In some embodiments described herein, the plaster comprises a solvent, a base material, and does not comprise an active ingredient or medicament. In some other embodiments, the plaster described herein comprises an active ingredient or a medicament, a solvent, and a base material. In some embodiments, the patch preparation comprises both a medicament-free plaster and a medicament-containing plaster. In some embodiments, the plaster can also contain one or more additives.

Solvent

The solvent that is included in the plaster has a vapor pressure that is equal to or greater than 1 kPa at 20° C. The amount of the solvent in the plaster is about 2 wt % to about 35 wt % of the plaster. Some examples of useful solvent include, but not limited to, acyclic or cyclic aliphatic hydrocarbons such as n-hexane, n-heptane, and cyclohexane; an aliphatic alcohol such as ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, isobutyl alcohol, and 2-buthanol; esters such as isobutyl acetate, isopropyl acetate, and ethyl acetate; ketones such as acetone, methyl-ethyl-ketone, and methyl-isobutyl-ketone; ethers such as diethyl ether tetrahydrofuran and 1,4-dioxyane; aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene and xylene; inorganic solvent such as water and buffer solutions; and combinations thereof.

The solvent with a vapor pressure that is equal to or greater than 1 kPa at 20° C. rapidly escapes from the plaster under the room temperature or at skin surface temperature (about 32° C.). Consequently, adhesiveness of the plaster is reduced or lost, and it prevents reapplication of the used patch preparation onto the skin. In some embodiments, the reduction in the amount of solvent in the patch can also lead to a reduction or a loss of skin permeability of the medicament that is dissolved in the solvent.

In some embodiments, the amount of the solvent with a vapor pressure that is equal to or greater than 1 kPa may be about 2% to about 35% by weight, about 3% to about 20% by weight, or about 4% to about 12% by weight relative to the total weight of the plaster. In some embodiment, the amount of the solvent may be about 5% to about 35%, about 10% to about 35%, about 12% to about 30%, or about 15% to about 28%, relative to the total weight of the partially dried plaster. In some embodiment, when the plaster contains no medicament and/or when base material is an acrylic polymer, the amount of the solvent may be about 2% to about 35%, about 4% to about 30%, about 5% to about 25% or about 5% to about 12% by weight, relative to the total weight of the plaster. If the amount of such solvent was too low, adhesiveness reducing effect may not be obtained. If the amount of such solvent was too high, the patch preparation may not be formed appropriately. As used herein, the term “plaster” refers to a component of a patch preparation that may be in the form of a plaster layer on a support. Plaster is formed by mixing a solvent with a base material, then the solvent is partially or substantially dried. Other components of a plaster may include, but not limited to one or more medicaments and/or additives or combinations thereof.

In some embodiments, the amount of solvent is maintained at a substantially fixed level starting from the post production packaging of the patch to the removal of the release film. In some embodiments, the amount of solvent decreases less than about 5%, about 3%, about 2% or about 1%. As used herein, the amount of the solvent in the patch at post production packaging is measured after the coating and drying process that forms the plaster, and not the amount of the solvent in the plaster solution that was initially coated onto the support during the plaster preparation.

In order to maintain the amount of solvent in the patch, some appropriate means, for example wrapping the patch in a wrapping material or enclosing the patch in a sealed packaging, can be employed. Before the patch application, the surface of the plaster is usually protected by a release film. In some embodiments, the release film may be impermeable to the solvent.

Base Material

The term “base material” as used herein, refers to a component of a plaster. In some embodiments, a base material may comprise a polymer. In some embodiments, the base material comprises an elastic polymer. Suitable elastic polymers may include, but not limited to acrylic polymers, rubber polymers, and silicone-based polymers. One or more synthetic rubber polymers such as styrene-isoprene-styrene block copolymer, styrene-butadiene-styrene block copolymer, polyisoprene, polyisobutylene, and polybutadiene may also be used, and in some instances are preferred. When a rubber polymer is used, the concentration of the rubber polymer may be about 3% to about 40% by weight, about 4% to about 30% by weight, about 5% to about 20%, or about 5% to about 12% by weight relative to total weight of the plaster. When an acrylic polymer is used, the concentration of the acrylic polymer may be about 15% to about 80% by weight, about 20% to 70% by weight, or about 30% to about 60% relative to total weight of the plaster.

Medicaments

The patch preparation of the present disclosure may include one or more medicament in the plaster. The medicament may include any active ingredient that is suitable for a patch preparation, and the type of medicament is not limiting. For example, the medicament may comprise or be selected from hypnosedative, stimulant, psychoneurotic agent, regional anesthetic, muscle relaxant suxametonium, antiparkinsonian agent, antimigraine agent, anti-smoking drug, anti-allergic agent, anti-Alzheimer's agent, or opioid analgesic medication. The medicament may include one or more opioid analgesic medications such as morphine, codeine, fentanyl, oxycodone, and hydromorphone, or combinations thereof. Since these medicaments can be abused, there is a high demand for misuse prevention.

Additives

In some embodiments, the patch preparation may further comprise one or more additives. For example, the plaster may further contain an agent for preventing accidental ingestion. For example, substance having a strong bitter taste, such as denatonium benzoate, can be utilized. When concentration of denatonium benzoate is about 0.001% to about 0.1% by weight, or about 0.001% to about 0.01% by weight relative to total weight of the plaster, the patch preparation exhibits strong bitter taste in mouth and discourages ingestion by people (including children) and some animals.

Tackifiers

In some embodiments, the plaster may further contain one or more tackifiers. Rosin ester, hydrogenated rosin ester, maleate rosin, alicyclic saturated hydrocarbon resin, terpene resin, and polyolefin resin can be exemplified as the tackifiers. The concentration of the tackifier may be about 10% to about 40% by weight, about 20% to about 30% by weight, or about 22% to about 28% by weight relative to total weight of the plaster.

Percutaneous Absorption Accelerator

In some embodiments, the plaster may further comprise one or more organic solvents having percutaneous absorption accelerate effect. The organic solvent includes, for example, fatty acids, fatty alcohols, esters, and organic amine compounds. Examples of suitable fatty acids include capric acid, sorbic acid, levulinic acid, lauric acid, myristic acid, stearic acid, isostearic acid, and oleic acid. Examples of suitable fatty alcohols may include monovalent alcohol such as capryl alcohol, lauryl alcohol, myristyl alcohol, cetyl alcohol, stearyl alcohol, oleyl alcohol; and polyvalent alcohol such as propylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, and glycerin. Examples of suitable esters may include propylene carbonate, diethyl sebacate, isopropyl myristate, diisopropyl adipate, palmitic myristate, stearyl stearate, and C₅₋₁₂ medium-chain triglyceride. Examples of suitable organic amine compounds may include monoethanolamine, monoisopropanolamine, diethanolamine, diisopropanolamine, and triethanolamine, triisopropanolamine.

In some embodiments, a solvent having a percutaneous permeation accelerate effect and a vapor pressure equal to or greater than 1 kPa at 20° C. is preferably chosen as the solvent in the plaster disclosed herein. For example, when oxycodone is an active pharmaceutical ingredient in the patch, ethyl acetate and/or n-heptane may be used as the solvent. When ethyl acetate and n-heptane are used in combination, the ratio between ethyl acetate and n-heptane may be, for example, 1:2 to 10:1. In embodiments where fentanyl is the medicament in a patch, any one of ethanol, isopropanol, or ethyl acetate may be used.

The plaster may also contain other additives such as a filler, an antioxidant agent, a pH adjuster, and perfume, or combinations thereof.

Support

The plaster is deposited or laminated on one of the surfaces of the support to form the patch preparation described herein. The support can be a support which is permeable to a solvent with a vapor pressure equal to or greater than about 1 kPa at 20° C. (i.e., “solvent permeable support”), or a support which is impermeable or substantially impermeable to the such solvent (i.e., “solvent impermeable support”).

Solvent permeation rate of the solvent permeable support may be greater than 1 mg/l cm²/24 hr, meaning more than 1 mg of solvent evaporates through 1 cm² of the support in 24 hours. Solvent permeation rate of the solvent impermeable support may be smaller than 0.5 mg/l cm²/24 hr.

A solvent-permeable support may comprise or be selected from porous materials such as woven or non-woven cloth or porous sheet support. In some embodiments, the woven or non-woven cloth or sheet comprises resin such as polyester, polypropylene, polyurethane, or vinyl chloride, or combinations thereof; or pulp.

A solvent-impermeable support may comprise or be selected from a non-porous sheet or coated cloth or sheet. In some embodiments, the coated cloth or sheet is coated with a resin film comprising polyethylene terephthalate, polyamide, or vinyl chloride, or combinations thereof. In some further embodiments, the coated cloth or sheet comprises a woven or non-woven cloth coated with a resin coating material. The resin coating material may include, for example, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or a resin material disclosed herein. The resin coating material may be any of the material form the resin film mentioned herein.

In some embodiments, the solvent-impermeable support may be or comprise a bilayer or multi-layer film. The bilayer film may be or comprise a laminated product of PET and polyethylene. The multi-layer film may comprise woven or non-oven cloth as an external layer. In one embodiment, the solvent-impermeable support is a multi-layer film comprising polyethylene film, PEP film and non-woven cloth made of PET. In a further embodiment, the arrangement of this multi-layer film is as follows: polyethylene film/PET film/non-woven cloth made of PET. When woven cloth or non-woven cloth is used as the most external layer (the layer on which plaster is directly disposed), fibers of the cloth are partially embedded in the plaster layer to fix the plaster onto the support.

When the support is a solvent-permeable support, the patch preparation may be wrapped with an appropriate wrapping material until just before applied on the skin surface, so as to prevent evaporation of the solvent from the plaster. The amount of the solvent with a vapor pressure equal to or greater than about 1 kPa at 20° C. is maintained in predetermined range until the release film is removed. Under this condition, the plaster has enough adhesiveness. Therefore, when it is applied on the skin surface, it adheres to the skin surface and the adhesion state is maintained.

During the adhesion to the skin, the solvent may evaporate through the solvent-permeable support, and is eliminated from the plaster. In some embodiments, the solvent may be partially or completely eliminated from the plaster within about 5 minutes, within about 10 minutes, within about 15 minutes or within about 30 minutes after the patch is removed from the wrapping materials. In some embodiments, even after the solvent has evaporated, the patch preparation continues to adhere to the skin. However, once the patch preparation is peeled off from the skin in the state that the solvent has evaporated from the plaster, the plaster loses or has a reduced adhesiveness. Therefore, the patch preparation does not re-adhere to the skin after it has been removed. The “state that the solvent has evaporated from the plaster” means that the amount of the solvent is less than about 30%, less than about 35%, less than about 40%, less than about 45%, less than about 50%, less than about 55%, less than about 60%, less than about 65%, less than about 70%, less than about 75%, or less than about 80% of the amount of solvent at the time of removing the release film, or in a range defined by any of the two preceding values.

In other words, once more than about 30%, about 35%, about 40%, about 45%, about 50%, about 55%, about 60%, about 65%, about 70%, about 75%, or about 80% of the solvent in the plaster has evaporated, the patch would no longer adhere to the skin. However, in some embodiments, if the patch was already on the skin, the patch will stay on the skin even if the solvent was evaporated, for example, through the solvent-permeable support. In these embodiments, the patch will lose its adhesion as soon as, or soon after, it is peeled off the skin.

In some embodiments, the patch preparation would lose or reduce its adhesion when the plaster is exposed to air for at least about 5 minutes, about 10 minutes, or about 15 minutes.

In some embodiments, when the support is the solvent-impermeable support, the patch preparation may be wrapped with an appropriate wrapping material until just before applying the patch on the skin surface, so as to prevent evaporation of the solvent from the plaster. The amount of the solvent in the plaster disposed on the solvent-impermeable support is kept constant until the release film is removed. Even after the application to the skin, the amount of the solvent is not substantially changed, because the plaster is covered with the solvent-impermeable support on one side, and attached to the skin surface on the other side. In certain instances, a certain amount of solvent may permeate through the skin. The plaster is warmed by body heat to almost the same as skin surface temperature (about 32° C.) after application, thus the solvent is rapidly evaporated from the plaster once the patch is removed from the skin. Consequently, adhesiveness of the plaster is lost or reduced quickly after the patch removal, and the patch does not re-adhere to the skin again.

In some embodiments, the permeability of an active ingredient or medicament through the skin may depend on the type of solvent it is dissolved in. In some embodiments that requires the solvent to carry the active ingredient or medicament through the skin, an active ingredient/medicament may have difficulty in penetrating through the skin after the solvent has evaporated following the removal of the patch.

In some embodiments, the solvent-permeable support and the solvent-impermeable support can be used in combination. In this case, the patch preparation can be a laminated body comprising a first and a second plaster, and a first and a second support. The first support is a solvent-permeable support, and the second support is a solvent-impermeable support. In some embodiments, the first plaster does not contain any medicament, and second plaster contains one or more medicaments. In some embodiments, the first support, the first plaster, the second support, and the second plaster are laminated in this order, and the second plaster is configured to adhere to the skin. The surface areas of the patch layers satisfy the following formula:

first plaster>second support≧second plaster

In other words, the surface area of the first plaster is greater than the surface area of the solvent-impermeable support, and the surface area of the solvent-impermeable support is greater or equal to the surface area of the second plaster.

In some embodiments, their surface areas satisfy the following formula:

first support≧first plaster>second support≧second plaster

In some embodiments, the patch further has a release layer on the second plaster.

An Example of patch preparation as described herein is further illustrated in FIG. 1. In FIG. 1, element 1 illustrates a solvent-permeable support, element 3 illustrates a solvent-impermeable support, elements 2 and 4 illustrate a first plaster and a second plaster respectively. The first plaster (2) is disposed on the solvent-permeable support(1), the solvent-impermeable support(3) is disposed on the first plaster(2), and the second plaster(4) is disposed on the solvent-impermeable support (3). The second plaster (4) comprises a medicament.

In the example described in FIG. 1, the first support plays a role in attaching and fixing the patch preparation on a skin surface. The second plaster plays a role in storing a medicament, and releasing the medicament after application of the patch to the skin. Therefore, the surface area of the first support is preferably larger compared to the surface area of the second support and the second plaster. In some embodiments, the surface area of the second support may be less than about 75%, about 70%, about 65%, about 60%, about 55%, about 50%, about 45%, about 40%, about 35%, or about 30% of that of the first support, or in a range defined by any of the two preceding values. In some embodiments, the second plaster is not especially required to have adhesiveness. In some embodiments, the second plaster does not have enough adhesiveness to keep adhesion to the skin surface by itself.

As described herein, the first plaster has enough adhesiveness to keep adhesion to skin after application of the patch. During application, the solvent as describe herein evaporates, and may be partially or completely eliminated from the plaster within about 5 minutes, within about 10 minutes, within about 15 minutes or within about 30 minutes after the application. Thus, once the patch preparation is removed from skin surface, it does not exhibit adhesiveness. Therefore, the patch preparation does not adhere to the skin again following the removal.

However, once the patch has been applied to the skin, it continues to adhere to the skin surface until it is peeled off. In some embodiments, the patch continues to adhere to the skin after more than about 30 minutes, about 8 hours, about 12 hours or about 24 hours have passed. In some embodiments, the patch continues to adhere to the skin after the solvent has evaporated from the plaster. The second plaster contains a medicament dissolved in the solvent, and the medicament exhibits percutaneous permeability. However, once the second plaster is removed from skin surface, the solvent is rapidly eliminated from the plaster. Consequently, the percutaneous permeability of the medicament is remarkably decreased when it is put in contact with the skin again.

Methods of Making the Patch Preparation

In some embodiments, the patch preparation is made by disposing a coating liquid or coating solution on a support to form a plaster on the support, and drying the plaster to form a sticky or adhesion surface.

A solution containing a base material is provided by dissolving one or more polymers in a first solvent. In some embodiments, the solution containing the base material is used as the coating solution. In some embodiments, an active agent solution and the base material solution are combined to form the coating solution. In some embodiments, the solvent used for preparing a base material solution is the same as the solvent used for preparing the active agent solution, for example, heptane, ethyl acetate or a combination thereof. In other embodiments, the solvent used for preparing a base material solution may be different from the solvent used for preparing the active agent solution, as long as the vapor pressure of the solvent is greater than 1 kPa.

The active agent/medicament solution is provided by adding the active agent/medicament to a second solvent and mixing to dissolve the active agent/medicament. The first and the second solvent described herein may be the same, or may be different. In some embodiments, the first and the second solvent may comprise a solvent described herein, for example, ethanol, ethyl acetate, propanol, isopropanol, n-propyl acetate, isopropyl acetate, 1-butanol, 2-butanol, t-butyl alcohol, n-butyl acetate, isobutyl acetate, n-hexane, 2-hexane, 1-hexanol, 2-hexanol, n-heptane, 1-heptanol, cyclohexane, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, methyl-ethyl-ketone, methyl-isobutyl-ketone, diethyl ether, 1,4-dioxyane, benzene, xylene, or water, or combinations thereof. In some embodiments, may also include a third solvent that can serve as a percutaneous absorption accelerator described herein. In some embodiments, one or more additives may also be added to the active agent solution or the base material solution or both, such as filler, an antioxidant agent, a pH adjuster, and perfume.

The coating solution is disposed or coated onto a support to form a plaster. The plaster is then dried until the amount of solvent remained in the plaster is within the selected range described herein. For example, the plaster is dried until the amount of the solvent is about 2% to about 30% by weight of the plaster.

A release film is applied to the exposed plaster surface once the desired solvent concentration has been reach. And the patch preparation may be packaged.

Examples

The present disclosure is described in detail with the following examples. The examples below are non-limiting and are merely representative of various aspects of the disclosure.

Patch Preparations 1-A and 1-B Containing Oxycodone

Patch preparations containing oxycodone with the composition shown in Table 1 were prepared. Potassium hydrate, levulinic acid, and glycerin were heated and mixed. After they were dissolved, sodium acid sulfite was added and mixed to form a mixture. Oleic acid, denatonium benzoate, diisopropanolamine, propylene carbonate, and propyl gallate were then added to the mixture, and the mixture was heated and stirred. Subsequently, oxycodone hydrochloride was added to the mixture, and the mixture was heated and mixed again to yield an oxycodone solution. Separately, terpene resin, styrene-isoprene-styrene block copolymer, light anhydrous silicic acid, ethyl acetate, and heptane were mixed together to yield a viscous elastomer liquid. The oxycodone solution and the elastomer liquid were mixed to yield a coating liquid. The coating liquid was coated on a PET liner treated with silicon treatment liquid, and dried until both concentrations of ethyl acetate and heptane relative to total weight of the plaster achieved about 10% by weight. It was laminated on one of the surfaces of the PET film (support). Thus, a patch preparation 1-A comprising a release liner was obtained.

Patch preparation 1-B was prepared the same way preparation 1-A was prepared, then a release liner was peeled off from the patch preparation 1-B, leaving one side of the plaster exposed to air at room temperature for about an hour to allow evaporation of ethyl acetate and heptane from the plaster.

After one hour at room temperature, the patch preparation 1-A exhibited tackiness when evaluators touched the plaster with their gloved hand. By contrast, the patch preparation 1-B didn't exhibit tackiness when the evaluators touched the plaster with their gloved hand.

Patch Preparations 2-A and 2-B Containing Oxycodone

Patch preparations 2-A and 2-B were prepared following the same procedure described above for the patch preparation 1-A and 1-B, except that the amount of the components used for the patch preparation 1-A and 1-B was changed as shown in Tale 1, and the concentrations of ethyl acetate and heptane after dried were adjusted to 5% respectively.

The release liner of the patch preparation 2-B was peeled off, leaving one side of the plaster exposed to air at room temperature for one hour, allowing evaporation of ethyl acetate and heptane from the plaster.

After one hour, the patch preparation 2-A exhibited tackiness when evaluators touched the plaster with their gloved hand. By contrast, the patch preparation 2-B didn't exhibit tackiness when the evaluators touched the plaster with their gloved hand.

In vitro Evaluation of Percutaneous Permeability

As to the patch preparations 1-A through 2-B, percutaneous permeability of oxycodone was evaluated using Franz static diffusion cells. Pig skin was used for the experiment. The amount of the cumulative skin permeation at each sampling point (2 hr, 4 hr, 6 hr, and 8 hr) is shown in Table 2. As is clear from Table 2, the patch preparations 1-B and 2-B exhibited significantly lower cumulative skin permeation at each sampling point compared with those of the patch preparations 1-A and 2-A.

TABLE 1 1-A 1-B 2-A 2-B Oxycodone hydro- 18.64 18.64 19.62 19.62 chloride•3H₂O ethyl acetate 372.88 372.88 392.39 392.39 heptane 124.29 124.29 130.80 130.80 glycerin 15.54 15.54 16.35 16.35 oleic acid 24.86 24.86 26.16 26.16 levulinic acid 6.21 6.21 6.54 6.54 diisopropanolamine 4.35 4.35 4.58 4.58 propylene carbonate 31.07 31.07 32.70 32.70 terpene resin 273.44 273.44 261.59 261.59 SIS copolymer 87.01 87.01 65.40 65.40 potassium hydrate 3.42 3.42 3.60 3.60 light anhydrous 37.29 37.29 39.24 39.24 silicic acid denatonium benzoate 0.062 0.062 0.065 0.065 sodium acid sulfite 0.62 0.62 0.65 0.65 propyl gallate 0.31 0.31 0.33 0.33 total 1000 1000 1000 1000 ethyl acetate content 10% 10% 5% 5% in the plaster heptane content in the 10% 10% 5% 5% plaster tack strength ∘ x ∘ x cumulative skin 2 hr 6.90 0.00 2.10 0.80 permeation 4 hr 16.50 1.10 12.50 5.20 amount 6 hr 29.00 4.30 27.60 12.20 (μg/cm²) 8 hr 42.90 9.90 44.90 21.30 ∘: felt tackiness when touch the adhesive layer with a gloved hand x: did not feel tackiness when touch the adhesive layer with a gloved hand SIS copolymer: styrene-isoprene-styrene copolymer

Patch Preparations 3 and 4 Containing Oxycodone

Patch preparations 3 and 4 were prepared following the same procedure described above for the patch preparation 1-A, except that the components with the amount shown in Table 2 were used to prepare the patch preparations 3 and 4, and a solvent permeable woven cloth was used instead of a PET liner. Each of the patch preparations 3 and 4 is applied to the skin for one hour at room temperature, and then is peeled off the skin. After leaving the patches at ambient temperature for about 30 minutes, the patch preparations 3 and 4 are then reapplied to the skin again. However, it is difficult for the patch preparations 3 and 4 to be re-adhered to the skin. This demonstrates that the safety feature of the patch formulation works as intended.

Patch Preparation 5 Containing Oxycodone

Patch preparation 5 was prepared following the same procedure described above for the patch preparation 1-A, except that the components shown in Table 2 were used to prepare the patch preparation 5. The patch preparation 5 is applied to the skin for 30 minutes at room temperature. The concentration level of the solvent in the plaster of the patch preparation 5 is maintained while it is adhered to the skin. 30 minutes after the patch preparation 5 is peeled off from the skin, the patch preparation 5 is applied to the skin again. However, the patch preparation 5 does not adhere to the skin since the solvent is rapidly eliminated from the plaster soon after the patch preparation 5 is peeled off from the skin.

TABLE 2 3 4 5 Oxycodone hydrochloride•3H₂O 21.6 21.2 18.4 ethyl acetate 375.3 367.3 371.6 heptane 125.1 122.4 185.8 glycerin 0.0 15.3 13.3 oleic acid 25.0 24.5 21.2 levulinic acid 6.1 5.3 diisoproopanolamine 4.4 4.3 3.7 propylene carbonate 31.3 30.6 26.5 medium-chain triglyceride 30.6 oleyl alcohol 31.3 terpene resin 250.2 244.8 254.8 SIS copolymer 93.8 91.8 63.7 potassium hydrate 3.4 3.4 2.9 light ahydrous silicic acid 37.5 36.7 31.9 denatonium benzoate 0.0626 0.0612 0.0531 sodium acid sulfite 0.53 propyl gallate 0.31 0.31 0.27 sodium pyrosulfite 0.63 0.61 total 1000 1000 1000 ethyl acetate content in the plaster 8% 8% 3% heptane content in the plaster 3% 3% 4%

Patch Preparation 6 Containing Oxycodone

Patch preparation 6 was prepared following the same procedure described above for the patch preparation 1-A, except that the amount of the components as shown in Table 3 were used for the patch preparation 6. The percutaneous permeability of oxycodone of the patch preparation 6 was evaluated using Franz static diffusion cells. Pig skin was used for the experiment. The amount of the cumulative skin permeation at each sampling point (1 hr, 2 hr, 4 hr, 6 hr, and 8 hr) is shown in Table 4 and FIG. 2.

Separately from the evaluation above, the release liner was peeled off from the patch preparation 6, and one side of the plaster of the patch preparation 6 was exposed to air. The patch preparation 6 was left for 10 minutes or 30 minutes under room temperature for ethyl acetate and heptane to evaporate from the plaster. After that, the percutaneous permeability of Oxycodone of the patch preparation 6 was evaluated using Franz static diffusion cells with pig skin. The amount of the cumulative skin permeation at each sampling point (1 hr, 2 hr, 4 hr, 6 hr, and 8 hr) is shown in Table 4 and FIG. 2. As is clear from FIG. 2, the cumulative skin permeation of the patch preparation 6 applied after 10 minutes or 30 minutes exposure to air was significantly lower than that of the patch preparation 6 applied to the skin immediately.

TABLE 3 Patch Preparation 6 Amount in the plaster (%) oxycodone hydrochloride 3H₂O 3.016 ethyl acetate 16.0 heptane 7.0 glycerin 2.178 oleic acid 3.485 levulinic acid 0.871 diisopropanolamine 0.610 propylene carbonate 4.357 polyisobutylene 1.743 SIS-copolymer 47.923 terpene resin 9.585 potassium hydrate 0.497 light anhydrous silicic acid 2.614 denatonium benzoate 0.009 sodium acid sulfite 0.087 propyl gallate 0.044 total 100.02

TABLE 4 Patch Preparation 6 1 hr 2 hr 4 hr 6 hr 8 hr cumulative immediate apply 0 0.8 7.6 16.7 28.5 skin 10 min open time 0 0 1.7 5.9 12.6 permeation 30 min open time 0 0.1 1.4 3.8 4.1 amount (μg/cm²)

Patch Preparation 7 Containing Fentanyl

Patch preparation 7 was prepared following the same procedure as described above for the patch preparation 1-A, except that Fentanyl was used as an active ingredient instead of Oxycodone hydrochloride, and the components with the amounts shown in Table 5 were used to prepare the patch preparation 7. In Table 5, the term “charged amount” refers to the amount of the components used to prepare the coating solution, and the term “amount after dried” refers to the amount of the components after some solvent has evaporated to form the plaster. The percutaneous permeability of Fentanyl of the patch preparation 7 was evaluated using Franz static diffusion cells. Pig skin was used for the experiment. The amount of the cumulative skin permeation at each sampling point (2 hr, 4 hr, 6 hr, 8 hr, and 24 hr) is shown in Table 6.

Separately from the evaluation above, the release liner was peeled off from the patch preparation 7, allowing one side of the plaster of the patch preparation 7 to be exposed to air. The patch preparation 7 was left for 30 minutes at room temperature for ethyl acetate and heptane to evaporate from the plaster. After that, the percutaneous permeability of Fentanyl of the patch preparation 7 was evaluated using Franz static diffusion cells with pig skin. The amount of the cumulative skin permeation at each sampling point (2 hr, 4 hr, 6 hr, 8 hr, and 24 hr) is shown in Table 6 and FIG. 3. As is clear from FIG. 3, the cumulative skin permeation of the patch preparation 7 applied after 30 minutes exposure to air was significantly lower than that of the patch preparation 7 applied immediately.

TABLE 5 Patch Preparation 7 Charged amount (%) Amount after dried (%) fentanyl 8.00 8.09 ethyl acetate 91.620 14.09 heptane 36.00 9.05 polyisobutylene 1.98 2.00 SIS copolymer 55.00 55.60 terpene resin 11.00 11.12 propyl gallate 0.05 0.05 total 203.65 100.00

TABLE 6 Patch Preparation 7 0 hr 2 hr 4 hr 6 hr 8 hr 24 hr Cumulative immediate 0.00 4.20 20.76 51.26 81.50 300.39 skin apply permeation 30 min 0.00 0.71 5.50 19.54 32.66 147.27 (μg/cm²) open time

Patch Preparation 8 Containing Hydromorphone

Patch preparation 8 was prepared following the same procedure described above for the patch preparation 1-A, except that Hydromorphone hydrochloride was used as an active ingredient instead of Oxycodone hydrochloride, and the components with the amount shown in Table 7 were used to prepare the patch preparation 8. In Table 7, the term “charged amount” refers to the amount of the components used to prepare the coating solution, and the term “amount after dried” refers to the amount of the components after some solvent has evaporated to form the plaster, and the term “amount after 30 min” refers to the amount of the components after 30 minute exposure to air. The percutaneous permeability of Hydromorphone of the patch preparation 8 was evaluated using Franz static diffusion cells. Pig skin was used for the experiment. The amount of the cumulative skin permeation at each sampling point (1 hr, 2 hr, 4 hr, 8 hr, 11 hr, 21 hr, and 24 hr) is shown in Table 8 and FIG. 4.

Separately from the evaluation above, the release liner was peeled off from the patch preparation 8, and one side of the plaster of the patch preparation 8 was exposed to air. The patch preparation 8 was left in the air for 30 minutes at room temperature. Following the 30-minute exposure, the patch preparation 8 was contacted to the pig skin and the percutaneous permeability of Hydromorphone of the patch preparation 8 was evaluated using Franz static diffusion cells. The amount of the cumulative skin permeation at each sampling point (1 hr, 2 hr, 4 hr, 8 hr, 11 hr, 21 hr, and 24 hr) is shown in Table 8 and FIG. 4. As is clear from FIG. 4, the cumulative skin permeation of the patch preparation 8 applied after 30 minutes exposure to air was significantly lower than that of the patch preparation 8 applied immediately.

TABLE 7 Charged Amount after Amount after Patch Preparation 8 amount (%) dried (%) 30 min (%) hydromorphone hydrochloride 3.00 2.83 2.59 ethyl acetate 75.00 17.89 0.52 heptane 5.00 0.98 0.27 oleic acid 2.00 1.89 1.73 diisopropanolamine 1.00 0.94 0.86 glyceryl monostearate 0.50 0.47 0.43 HCO-40 1.50 1.42 1.29 MCT 2.00 1.89 1.73 isopropyl mrystate 1.00 0.94 0.86 diethyl sebacate 1.00 0.94 0.86 glycerine 4.00 3.78 3.45 1,3-butylene glycol 4.00 3.78 3.45 oleyl alcohol 6.00 5.66 5.18 terpene resin 10.00 9.44 8.63 SIS copolymer 44.00 41.53 37.95 poly isobutylene 2.00 1.89 1.73 light anhydrous silicic acid 3.00 2.83 2.59 denatonium benzoate 0.01 0.01 0.14 sodium acid sulfite 0.20 0.19 0.17 propyl gallate 0.50 0.47 0.43 BHT 0.25 0.24 0.21 total 165.96 100.00 75.09 HCO-40: PEG-40 Hydrogenated Castor Oil MCT: Medium-chain triglycerides BHT: Butylated hydroxytoluene

TABLE 8 Accumulative permeation (μg/cm²) 0 hr 1 hr 2 hr 4 hr 8 hr 11 hr 21 hr 24 hr Immediate apply Mean. 0.00 11.24 14.10 21.01 42.45 62.20 132.16 152.84 S.D. 0.00 2.55 1.68 3.30 13.55 21.77 41.95 45.59 30 min open time Mean. 0.00 10.58 11.31 13.14 18.99 26.59 64.19 76.56 S.D. 0.00 1.62 1.24 0.37 3.88 9.36 32.49 38.06

Patch Preparation 9

An appropriate amount of ethyl acetate was added to a 6:1 (by weight) mixture of styrene-isoprene-styrene block copolymer and terpene resin to form a coating liquid with a proper consistency for coating application. The coating liquid was coated onto a siliconized PET liner, and dried until ethyl acetate concentration in the plaster achieved 10% by weight to form a plaster with a PET liner on one surface. The plaster was then laminated onto a woven cloth (solvent-permeable support) to produce patch preparation 9. The obtained preparation was adhered to human skin surface. After 30 minutes of the adhesion, the patch preparation 9 was removed. Though the peeling stress was not small, the plaster after removal didn't exhibit adhesiveness and couldn't be re-adhered to the skin surface.

Patch Preparations 10-1 and 10-2 Containing No Active Ingredient

Ethyl acetate and heptane were added to a 1:1 (by weight) mixture of acrylic resin (DURO TAK) and terpene resin to form a coating liquid. The coating liquid was coated onto a siliconized PET liner, and dried until amount of each ingredient achieved a ratio as shown in Table 9. The plaster was laminated onto a woven cloth (solvent permeable support) to produce patch preparation 10-1. Patch preparation 10-2 was prepared following the same procedure of patch preparation 10-1, except that denatonium benzoate was further added. The obtained preparations 10-1 and 10-2 were adhered to human skin surface. After 30 minutes of the adhesion, the patch preparations were removed. Though the peeling stress was not small, the plaster after removal didn't exhibit adhesiveness and couldn't be re-adhered to the skin surface.

TABLE 9 10-1 10-2 acrylic resin 47 47 terpen resin 47 47 ethyl acetate 3 3 heptane 3 2.99 denatonium benzoate 0.01 total 100 100 

What is claimed is:
 1. A patch preparation comprising a plaster disposed on a support, wherein the plaster comprises a solvent having a vapor pressure equal to or greater than about 1 kPa at 20° C., and the amount of the solvent is about 2% to 35% by weight of the plaster.
 2. The patch preparation of claim 1, wherein the amount of solvent is about 5% to about 25% by weight of the plaster.
 3. The patch preparation of claim 1, wherein the solvent is selected from the group consisting of an acyclic or cyclic aliphatic hydrocarbon, an aliphatic alcohol, an esters, a ketones, an ether, an aromatic hydrocarbons, and water, and combinations thereof.
 4. The patch preparation of claim 3, wherein the solvent is selected from the group consisting of n-hexane, n-heptane, cyclohexane, ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, isobutyl alcohol, 2-buthanol, isobutyl acetate, isopropyl acetate, ethyl acetate, acetone, methyl-ethyl-ketone, methyl-isobutyl-ketone, diethyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, 1,4-dioxyane, benzene, xylene, and water, and combinations thereof.
 5. The patch preparation of claim 1, wherein the plaster further comprises a medicament.
 6. The patch preparation of claim 5, wherein the medicament is selected from the group consisting of a hypnosedative, a stimulant, a psychoneurotic agent, a regional anesthetic, a muscle relaxant, suxametonium, an antiparkinsonian agent, an antimigraine agent, an anti-smoking drug, an anti-allergic agent, an anti-Alzheimer's agent, and an opioid analgesic medication, and combinations thereof.
 7. The patch preparation of claim 6, wherein the medicament comprises one or more opioid analgesic medications selected from the group consisting of morphine, codeine, fentanyl, oxycodone, and hydromorphone, and combinations thereof.
 8. The patch preparation of claim 1, wherein the plaster further comprises a base material.
 9. The patch preparation of claim 8, wherein the base material comprises an elastic polymer.
 10. The patch preparation of claim 9, wherein the elastic polymer is selected from the group consisting of an acrylic polymer, a rubber polymer, and a silicone-based polymer, and combinations thereof.
 11. The patch preparation of claim 1, wherein the plaster further comprises one or more additives.
 12. The patch preparation of claim 1, wherein the support is a solvent impermeable support.
 13. The patch preparation of claim 1, wherein the support is a solvent permeable support.
 14. The patch preparation of claim 13, wherein: a solvent impermeable support is disposed on the plaster; a second plaster is disposed on the solvent impermeable support, and the second plaster comprises a medicament; and the surface area of the plaster is greater than the surface area of the solvent impermeable support, and the surface area of the solvent impermeable support is greater than or equal to the surface area of the second plaster.
 15. The patch preparation of claim 14, wherein the plaster does not contain a medicament.
 16. A method of preparing a patch preparation comprising: Providing a support; providing a coating solution comprising a solvent and a polymer; disposing the coating solution on the support to form a plaster; and drying the plaster until the amount of the solvent is about 2% to 35% by weight of the plaster.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein the coating solution further comprises a medicament.
 18. The method of claim 16, wherein the solvent has a vapor pressure equal to or greater than about 1 kPa at 20° C.
 19. A method of preventing or reducing the occurrence of misuse or abuse of a patch preparation for percutaneous delivery of a medicament, comprising: providing a patch preparation of claim 1, wherein the patch preparation loses its adhesion when the plaster is exposed to air and the solvent concentration in the plaster decreases more than 50% or after the patch preparation is removed from skin.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the patch preparation loses its adhesion when the plaster is exposed to air for at least about 10 minutes. 